Elevator



April 7, 1964 ELEVATOR 3 Sheetsnsheetl 2 Filed July 19. 1961 Vhs INVENTOR .E0/M445' /I/Zs/V BY www @ma LW ATTORNEYS April 7, 1964 D, s, NELSON 3,127,957

l ELEvAToR Filed July 19. 1961 f s sheets-sheet s( mvENTR DONALD s NELSON ATTORNEYS United States Patent O 3,127,357 ELEVATR Donald S. Neisnn, 1867 (Iomnierce St., Daiias 1, Tex. Filed .luly 19, 1961, Ser. No. 125,214 12 Claims. (El. IS7-19) This invention relates to elevators, and more particularly to an improved arrangement for suspending an elevator car for vertical movement in a shaftway, or other location.

The conventional elevator systems in use today employ counterweights attached to cables which support the car and are wound on cable drums having a diameter of only a foot or two. Due to the amount of weight which must be moved and the necessity for fast acceleration, the power requirements of these drums are relatively high.

One of the features of this invention involves the use of large diameter cable-winding drums which not only reduce the amount of curvature to which the cable is subjected, but also by providing a large area for contact with the cable reducing the amount of tension required to prevent' slippage.

In one form of the invention, a pair of cable-winding drums are mounted side by side for rotation about a common axis. Means is provided to turn these drums in opposite directions and a supporting cable is wound about each of these drums so that when a force in tension is applied to this cable, the winding drums will literally climb up and down the cable.

It is also a feature of this invention to provide an arrangement whereby a pair of elevator cars may be arranged in superposed relation one above the other. With this arrangement, loading and unloading time will be reduced in multi-story buildings because loading stops can be made at one, two, or more levels simultaneously.

A further feature of the invention is the substitution of a pair of vertical rails for the suspension cables. In this arrangement, the drum-shaped rotating members are provided with teeth adapted to engage with a set of teeth on each of the rails to provide vertical movement of the elevator.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the following specication in connection with the annexed drawings.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic front elevation of one form in which this invention may be embodied;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the same;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation on a greatly enlarged scale of one form of drive mechanism which may be employed in connection with the arrangement schematically shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary view of a modified form of gearing which may be employed with the winding drum mechanism shown in FIGS. 3 and 4;

FIG. 6 is a plan View on the same scale as FIGS. 1 and 2, but showing a modified arrangement of the Winding drum mechanism;

FIG. 7 is another modified form of arrangement of the winding drum mechanism.

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view on a slightly larger scale than that of FIGS. l and 2, showing still another form of driving mechanism, and;

l FIG. 9 is a side elevation on a slightly enlarged scale of a portion of one of the vertical tracks to be used with the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 8.

The numeral indicates generally an elevator mechanism adapted to travel vertically between the upper limits of a supporting beam or member 16, and the lower limits of an anchorage 17, which might be a basement lCC oor or sub-basement. In the drawings, no intermediate fioor levels or stops are indicated inasmuch as the present invention is not necessarily limited for use in buildings, but is equally adaptable for use in a structure such as scaffolding, a mine, or in any other application where a load is to be transported vertically.

However, it is within the purview of this invention, if the elevator is to be employed with multi-level building structures, that it may comprise two or more vertically superposed cabs or cars 18 and 19, if desired. With this arrangement, the loading and unloading time may be decreased since at each stop of the mechanism 15, loading and/ or unloading may take place at two levels simultaneously rather than only at a single one.

The driving mechanism for the elevator mechanism, indicated generally by the numeral 20, may be secured to the underside of the upper car 18 and to the roof of the lower car 19, but it will be obvious that if only a single car is used, this mechanism could be located in either position.

The driving mechanism shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, may include a cylindrical inner shell 21 which serves as a support for a pair of cable winding drums 22 and 23. These drums surround the outer periphery of the shell 21 and may be mounted on suitable bearing means, as will be explained later, so as to be rotatable about the shell. The shell, in turn, may be supported below the car 18 by means of a pair of pedestal-type supports 24 and 25. Similarly, the shell is secured to the roof of the car 19 by a similar arrangement of pedestal-type supports 26 and 27. A prime mover such as an electric motor 28 is supported within the shell upon a supporting spider 29, which may itself be supported either on the inner shell or upon a pair of the pedestal supports.

The motor 28 is connected by a mechanism (not shown) to drive a double-ended shaft 3i), and at the outer ends of this shaft there are provided gear mechanisms, indicated generally at 31 and 32, arranged, as will be explained later, to rotatably drive the cable-winding drums 22 and 23 in opposite directions at the same speed.

One end 33 of a cable, indicated generally by the nu meral 34, is attached, as by means of an eyebolt 35, to the supporting beam 16. The cable hangs downwardly and is wrapped around one of the cable-winding drums 23 for one or more turns and is then payed off to extend further downwardly at 36. At the lower end of the cable, a bight is formed by passing the cable around -a semi-circular saddle 37. The cable then extends upwardly at 38 and is Wrapped around the other cablewinding drum 22 for one or more turns in a direction opposite to that of the winding on drum 23. It is then payed out upwardly towards its other end 39, and secured to the beam 16 as by means of the eyebolt 40.

Downward force is exerted on the saddle 37 by any suitable means such as tension spring 41. Sufficient force is thereby maintained by this tension means so that the cable will grip the peripheries of the winding drums 22 and 23 to prevent slippage between the cable and the drums. So long as this tension is maintained in the cable, it will be observed that when the two drums are rotated, as previously described, by the driving motor 2S, they will literally climb up and down the cable 34.

Since both drums are of the same diameter and rotate in opposite directions, each of the drums will always move vertically up or down an equal amount, and therefore the supporting structure such as the cars 18 and 19 will always maintain their proper angular relationship to the associated structure, such as a building or scaffold while rising or falling.

Because the winding drums are quite large in diameter, preferably at least equal to the horizontal dimension of the load-bearing structure carried by the drums, and since the cable is in contact with the entire periphery of the drums, it will be obvious that relatively little tension is required to provide effective gripping power between the drums and the cable.

It will also be obvious that, instead of winding a single continuous length of cable around both drums, it would be possible to use a separate cable for each drum, in which case, each cable would need to be maintained under continuous tension.

The drivingr mechanism 2d, which is carried by the car or cars, is shown in detail in FIG. 3. ln this ligure, it will be observed that the means for rotatably supporting the drums 22 and 23 comprises a series of rollers 42 mounted on blocks 43 spaced at intervals about the outer periphery of the shell 21.

Each of the gearing mechanisms 3l and 32 for transferring power from the shaft 3@ to the drums is similar. Each of the outer extremities of the shaft Sil is provided with a worm gear 44, which meshes with a pair of spur gears 45 and 46 disposed on opposite sides of the worm gear and supported to rotate on horizontal axes on the inner shell 2l. Each of the spur gears is provided with an offset toothed driving portion, indicated respectively at 47 and 48 and these driving portions are arranged to mesh with a series of corresponding teeth 49 and 5t? arranged on the respective inner surfaces of the cable drums.

FIG. 6 shows schematically an elevator car 51, wherein the cable-winding drums 52 and 53 are positioned on the back wall of the car instead of on the top or bottom. Since the lifting force of the winding drums is offset horizontally with respect to the center of gravity of the load, a pair of vertically extending rails 54 are provided for sliding engagement with a pair of shoes 55 mounted on the sides of the car.

FIG. shows a modification of the drive mechanism which is particularly applicable to the arrangement of the cable drums shown in EEG. 6. The motor 56, instead of being mounted within the shell which supports the drum, can be positioned on the roof or under the floor. To avoid confusion it is shown as being mounted on the top of a single car. Power is transmitted from the motor to the drums by means of a shaft 57, which is provided with a relatively long pinion gear 58 at its extremity. This pinion gear meshes with two spur gears 59 and 6l) mounted to rotate about parallel spaced axes. These gears are also olfset axially with respect to each other and arranged to engage respectively with the teeth 6l and 62 on the inner peripheries of the winding drums 52 and 53 respectively.

ln FlG. 7, another arrangement of the winding drums is shown schematically. ln this form of the invention, the winding drums 63 and 64 are positioned centrally of an elevator car 65, but arranged so as to extend diagonally between opposite corners 66 and 67. As with the other modifications, the drums 63 and 64 may be located above or below the car, or in the alternative, they could surround the exterior of the car. One of the advantages of this arrangement is that because the distance across the diagonal is the greatest horizontal dimension, it will permit the use of winding drums having larger diameters than is the case when they are arranged at right angles to the side wall. The drums 64 and 65 are rotated in opposite directions by any one of the motor means previously described, but, to avoid confusion, the drive means is not specically shown in FIG. 7.

By using the largest possible diameter of cable-winding drum, the tension which must be applied to the supporting cables may be reduced to a minimum. Furthermore, by increasing the speed of rotation of the driving motor through the use of appropriate reduction gearing, the power requirements may also be reduced.

FIGS. 8 and 9 show a schematic arrangement of still another form of the invention. In this modication, an elevator car 68 moves vertically between two spaced rails 69 arranged vertically in parallel relation on opposite sides of the car. Extending along the entire length of approximately one half of the width of the rail, are a series of outwardly projecting teeth 70, while the other half of the rail is provided with a continuous slot 71, which extends inwardly beyond the bases of the teeth 70.

A pair of drum-shaped members 72 and 73 are mounted on the car 68 for rotation about a common axis in the same manner as disclosed in connection with the previously described forms of the invention. As in the case of the modification shown in FIG. 7, the members 72 and 73 may be located above or below the car or they could surround it, and the specific drive means is not shown. These members diifer, however, in that their exterior peripherial surfaces are provided with teeth 74 and 75. The teeth 74 will engage with teeth 7 0 of one of the rails, while the teeth 75 of the other rotating member will engage with the teeth 7@ of the opposite rail.

The drum-shaped members 72 and 73 are driven by any of the means previously disclosed, so as to rotate in opposite directions. However, in order to provide the same lineal rate of movement at each side ofthe car, the members 72 and 73 must be of equal diameter, and since these members rotate in opposite directions, each of the members may be in engagement with only one of the oppositely disposed rails 69.

This arrangement is permitted by the vertically extending slot 7l, which allows the teeth of the unengaged rotating member to move freely during vertical movement of the elevator car. An additional feature of this arrangement is the fact that the side faces 76 and 77 of the slot will serve to guide the peripheral portion of the unengaged rotating member during such vertical movement to assist in stabilizing the vehicle or car.

Instead of the described mechanism being arranged between the two cars, it should be understood that such mechanisms may be positioned above or below the car or cars.

While it is true that no counterweights are necessary for efficient operation of the various modifications of the invention shown and described herein, it is possible to employ a counterweight with any of these embodiments if desired.

Having disclosed several forms in which this invention may be embodied, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and improvements may be made which would come within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

l. ln elevator mechanisms, the combination including, elevator car means, a pair of cylindrical wheel members rotatably mounted on a common axis on said car means, means to drive said wheel members simultaneously in opposite directions, a pair of longitudinally vertically extending supporting means positioned on opposite sides of the car means, and means for engaging each of the peripheries of said wheel members in tractive climbing engagement with a respective one of said supporting means.

2. In elevator systems, the combination including elevator cab means, a pair of cable-winding drum means, means to mount the drum means on the cab means to rotate about a common axis means to drive both said drum means in opposite directions simultaneously and at the same circumferentially linear speed, a pair of cable strands, means to suspend said strands vertically in horizontally spaced relation to support the cab means, each said strand being wound around a respective drum means at least one turn to be paid on and olf each drum in a straight line tangent to the peripheries thereof, and means to maintain tension in said cable strands.

3. The invention as dened in claim 2, wherein said means to drive said drums, includes motor means and common gearing means, said gearing means being connected between said motor means and both said drum means.

4. The invention as defined in claim 3, wherein said common gearing means includes a worm gear and two pinion gears, each of said pinion gears being connected between said worm gear and a respective one of said drum means.

5. The invention as defined in claim 3, wherein said common gearing means includes three spur gears, one of said gears being connected with said motor means, each of the other two gears being connected between said first gear and a respective one of said drum means.

6. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein said means to mount each of the drum means includes a cylindrical support provided with exteriorly positioned roller means to support each of the drums.

7. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein said pair of cable strand means comprise parallel lengths of a continuous cable having a bight formed at its lower end, and a saddle member supported in said bight, said tension being applied to the saddle member in a downward direction.

8. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein the cab means is rectangular in plan, and the axis of said drum means is parallel with one of the sides of the cab means.

9. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein the cab means is rectangular in plan, and the axis of said drum means is angularly related with respect to the sides of the cab means.

10. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein the diameter of said drum means is at least equal to the hori- 30 zontal dimensions of the cab means.

11. In elevator mechanisms, the combination including elevator car means, a pair of cylindrical members rotatably mounted on a common axis on said car means, means to drive said members simultaneously in opposite directions, and a pair of longitudinal vertically extending rail means positioned on opposite sides of the car means, the peripheries of said cylindrical members being provided wtih teeth operatively engaged with similar teeth provided on said rail means.

12. The invention as dened in claim 11, wherein said rotary members are of the same diameter, and each of said rails is provided with a vertically extending slot to receive the periphery of the rotary member not in engagement with the teeth of said rail.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 396,430 Reichel n Ian. 22, 1889 447,172 Weaver Feb. 24, 1891 511,975 Sullivan Jan. 2, 1894 561,223 Hamilton June 2, 1896 964,989 Lugo-Vina July 19, 1910 1,896,776 ames Feb. 7, 1933 1,902,946 Breed Mar. 28, 1933 1,930,239 Hunt Oct. 10, 1933 2,349,263 Grabinski May 23, 1944 2,609,112 McKenzie Sept. 2, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,420 Great Britain 1856 4,169 Germany June 25, 1878 123,635 Germany Sept. 9, 1901 158,331 Sweden Mar. 26, 1957 

1. IN ELEVATOR MECHANISMS, THE COMBINATION INCLUDING, ELEVATOR CAR MEANS, A PAIR OF CYLINDRICAL WHEEL MEMBERS ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON A COMMON AXIS ON SAID CAR MEANS, MEANS TO DRIVE SAID WHEEL MEMBERS SIMULTANEOUSLY IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS, A PAIR OF LONGITUDINALLY VERTICALLY EXTENDING SUPPORTING MEANS POSITIONED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE CAR MEANS, AND MEANS FOR ENGAGING EACH OF THE PERIPH- 